Politics & Government

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley has cancelled a trip to the Republican National Convention so he can monitor preparations as Tropical Storm Isaac approaches the United States. Bentley said Saturday that he wants to make sure preparations and resources are in place. The storm had pushed into Cuba on Saturday and was headed northwest, possibly threatening Alabama's coast along the Gulf of Mexico. The governor urged Alabama residents to monitor weather forecasts. He said the storm could bring damaging winds and heavy rain to the state. He urged residents to prepare.

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — The center of Tropical Storm Isaac has cleared Haiti but heavy rain is falling in the capital and elsewhere from the outer bands of the system. Rocks, mud and other debris litter the streets of Port-au-Prince this morning and the city is on high alert for potential flooding. But the worst of the storm has hit far from the capital. The center of Isaac passed over the southern peninsula near the small city of Les Cayes and headed toward southern Cuba. There were no immediate reports Saturday of any deaths or major damage in Haiti.

Catholics are considered one of the most important swing groups in the country. Now, for the first time in history, both major political parties have Catholic vice presidential candidates. Guest host Viviana Hurtado discusses the Catholic voting bloc with pollster Robert Jones and conservative Catholic blogger Gayle Trotter.

A new military study suggests that some soldiers suffer mild traumatic brain injuries even before they go to war. These concussions, as they're also called, can come from taking "combatives" classes that teach hand-to-hand fighting during the soldiers' training.

In Tampa, where Republicans are gathering for their convention, Todd Akin has been meeting with supporters, including the Family Research Council, which, like Akin, opposes abortion rights. Connie Mackey heads the council's political action committees.

Mr. Akin, as I'm sure you know very well, as he defended his action, he said he misspoke, but then he said that he had said one word in one sentence on one day that was wrong. Is that all he got wrong?

It's MORNING EDITION from NPR News. I'm Steve Inskeep. By now, people across the nation have heard remarks by Missouri Republican Todd Akin. He says he misspoke about pregnancy and rape, but his words shifted the polls in his race for a vital U.S. Senate seat. Now Democrats want to be sure the remarks have a national effect. Here's NPR's Ari Shapiro.

Talk in Israel of a military strike on Iranian nuclear facilities has reached a fever pitch. Last week brought the news of an alleged "war plan" leaked to a blogger. This week, a well-informed military correspondent in Jerusalem reported that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is "determined" to attack Iran before the U.S. election.

If you vote, you might very well be confused about what the rules will be when you go to cast your ballot this fall. There's been a flood of new laws on things such as voter identification and early voting, and many of them are now being challenged in court.

Some cases could drag on until Nov. 6, Election Day, and beyond. The outcomes will affect voters, and maybe even the results.

Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley says state officials are keeping an eye on Tropical Storm Isaac in the Caribbean and will decide later if drastic measures are needed such as reversing interstate highway lanes or ordering massive evacuations.

Bentley also says if Isaac appears to threaten Alabama he will stay in the state and cancel plans next week to go to Tampa for the Republican National Convention.

The board that oversees the Alabama Trust Fund is not taking a position on whether voters should approve taking more than $437 million out of the fund to help operate state government.

The board chairman, Gov. Robert Bentley, said he did not ask the board to take a position during a meeting Thursday because the board manages the $2.3 billion fund, but it's up to voters to decide the issue in a statewide referendum Sept. 18.

Officials with Alabama's Department of Homeland Security say the agency has been steadily losing funds during the past decade. The department's federal funding this year is less than one-tenth of what it was in 2003. Department officials say state funding — $374,000 this year — is used mostly to meet the demands of Alabama's immigration law. State-level homeland security departments sprang up across the U.S. in the months and years after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

As the presidential election nears, Morning Edition is visiting swing counties in swing states for our series First and Main. We're listening to voters where they live — to understand what's shaping their thinking this election year.

A former State senator has filed a lawsuit in state court in Montgomery claiming that legislators violated the Alabama Constitution earlier this year by passing a 2013 budget that was not balanced. The 2013 General Fund budget, which goes into effect Oct. 1, relies on a transfer of approximately $467 million from the Alabama Trust Fund into state coffers over the next three years. Voters must approve the transfer in a constitutional amendment on the ballot Sept. 18. If the amendment is rejected, the state budget would have to be cut significantly.

Gov. Robert Bentley has set a special election schedule to fill the seat of Republican Rep. Elwyn Thomas of Oneonta before the Legislature's next regular session. Bentley selected Thomas last week to become executive director of the Alabama Manufactured Housing Commission effective Sept. 1. Thomas is resigning from the Alabama House on Aug. 31. Bentley announced Tuesday that major party candidates for the District 34 seat have until Sept. 7 to qualify with their parties. Primary elections will be Oct. 23 and a runoff, if necessary, on Dec. 11. Then the general election will be Jan. 29.

The Federal Reserve could take more steps to boost the struggling U.S. economy. That's according to minutes released Wednesday of the Federal Open Market Committee's July 31-Aug. 1 meeting.

"Many members judged that additional monetary accommodation would likely be warranted fairly soon unless incoming information pointed to a substantial and sustainable strengthening in the pace of the economic recovery," the minutes said. [PDF]

Jefferson County Circuit Judge Robert Vance Jr. is the only Democrat to sign up to run for chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court.

The Democratic Party's deadline to sign up was noon Wednesday.

The Democratic Party began seeking a new candidate after a party committee disqualified the original Democratic nominee, Pelham attorney Harry Lyon, on Friday. Lyon said Wednesday that he plans to vote for Republican nominee Roy Moore as a matter of principle.

Former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman is appealing his prison sentence three weeks before he is scheduled to report to federal prison to complete a more than six-year sentence in a government corruption case. Siegelman's attorney filed the notice yesterday in U.S. District Court in Montgomery saying the former governor is appealing the sentencing to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Gov. Robert Bentley says he and legislative leaders are committed to paying back the money if Alabama voters agree to take more than $437 million from a state trust fund to balance the state General Fund budget for three years.

The Justice Department is establishing a civil rights unit in Alabama after the state's crackdown on illegal immigration raised broader concerns about compliance with federal laws. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Perez said Tuesday fewer than 10 such units are located around the country. The nearest is in Memphis, Tennessee. Perez said the move is meant to ensure that the federal government has a continuing eye on civil rights issues in Alabama, which was a hotbed of unrest during the civil rights movement 50 years ago. The U.S.

With all its current troubles, Pakistan has not been attracting much foreign investment recently. In fact, China seems to be the only country that's prepared to pour money into Pakistan in a big way.

But a boost in Chinese investment has sparked resentment in southern Pakistan, where activists accuse China of trying to be a new colonial power. A bomb blast recently hit near the Chinese Consulate in Karachi — an ominous sign of the rising tensions.

U.S. Senate candidate Todd Akin apologized for his remarks about rape and pregnancy, but calls have intensified for him to withdraw. Plus, a new e-book claims the Obama campaign is in a constant state of conflict. Guest host Viviana Hurtado speaks with Janice Crouse of Concerned Women for America and Joy-Ann Reid of TheGrio.com.

And I'm Steve Inskeep. Missouri Senate candidate Todd Akin was going to face trouble, no matter what. But it's Akin's fate that he also faces a deadline today.

GREENE: If he should withdraw from the U.S. Senate race by 5 o'clock Central Time this afternoon, it will be easy for party officials to name a replacement. And he is under pressure not to miss this opportunity.

The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta has issued a ruling today on Alabama's immigration law or HB56. The Court has thrown out the provision that required schools to collect data on the immigration status of students who enroll in school. The Court has also temporarily blocked two sections of the law, Section 10 and Section 27. Section 10 is also known as the "papers please" section. It makes it a state crime if an immigrant is not carrying an alien registration document. Section 27 forbids citizens from entering into contracts with illegal immigrants.

Jefferson County Circuit Judge Robert Vance Jr. has signed up to run as a Democrat for chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court.

The Alabama Democratic Party disqualified its nominee, Pelham attorney Harry Lyon, on Friday over some statements he made. The party started seeking a replacement candidate on Monday. A party official said Vance signed up shortly after the party headquarters opened Monday morning. So far, he's the only one to sign up. The deadline is Wednesday. If more than one candidate signs up, the State Democratic Executive Committee will pick a nominee.

The killing Sunday in Afghanistan of an American soldier in what officials say was the latest in a series of "green on blue" attacks by Afghans in uniform against coalition personnel was the 10th in just the past two weeks.

The executive board of Alabama Public Television voted unanimously to hire WVUA-TV General Manager Roy Clem as its new executive director. The selection follows the controversial firing of former APT Chief Allan Pizzato and one of his lieutenants. The oustre is reportedly due to disagreement between Pizzato and members of the APT board on the airing of conservative christian programming. Mr. Pizzato is suing the board on the grounds that his firing was in violation of state law.

Several thousand people have signed a petition asking President Barack Obama to keep former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman from spending the next few years in prison. But Siegelman realizes the odds of getting a presidential commutation are about the same as winning a state lottery. More than 5,700 people convicted of federal crimes have asked Obama for a commutation of their sentences. Siegelman says only one has been approved. Despite the long odds, Siegelman says he's proud of his daughter for starting an online petition to ask the president to commute his sentence.

Alabama Democrats have removed Harry Lyon as their nominee for chief justice of the state Supreme Court.

A party committee made the decision Friday. It came after Lyon addressed party officials during a hearing in Birmingham. Lyon has made disparaging remarks about homosexuals and Republican opponent Roy Moore in interviews and on Facebook.

Lyon's statement to the panel veered from his personal Christian faith to claims of political wrongdoing going back decades. He says he didn't have much time to prepare a defense because his house was flooded and his dog died.